Chapter 7 - THE DEPARTURE GATE
The diner was practically empty, smelling of stale coffee and bleach.
Chloe slid into the booth across from me. She looked awful—dark circles under her eyes, her hands trembling as she clutched a cheap paper napkin. She refused to meet my eyes.
“Tell me,” I said, my voice hard but completely devoid of malice. “Tell me exactly what happened in Denver, or I walk out of here and let Luca destroy you.”
Chloe let out a choked sob. “It was raining. I was drunk, Jessi. I was so drunk. Luca had flown out to see me, and we had an argument. I got behind the wheel of the rental car, and… I hit someone.”
The bottom dropped out of my stomach. “Oh my god, Chloe.”
“Luca took the wheel,” she rushed on, tears spilling over her cheeks. “He moved me to the passenger seat before the police arrived. He told them he was driving. He paid the victim off with cash he stole from your accounts. He saved me from going to prison, Jessi. But since then… he owns me.”
“So you slept with him? You helped him drug me? You let him hurt my daughter?” I demanded, anger surging back to the surface.
“I didn't want to!” Chloe cried softly. “He said if I didn't help him get the trust fund, he would turn over the real evidence from Denver to the police. He has a recording of me confessing in the car right after we hit the guy.”
I sat back, staring at the woman I had grown up with. She was a victim, yes. But her cowardice had put my child in danger.
“He’s setting you up, Jessi,” Chloe whispered, wiping her face. “He doesn't just want custody. He’s leaving.”
The Reversal caught me completely off guard. “Leaving? He filed for custody this morning.”
Chloe reached into her purse and slid a piece of paper across the sticky diner table. “It’s a distraction. He wants you tied up in court, fighting the police, so you don't notice the accounts draining. He booked a flight to Belize for tomorrow night.”
I looked at the printed itinerary. It was a one-way ticket for Luca.
“And the worst part?” Chloe’s voice broke. “He has a fake passport for Fiona. He’s taking her, Jessi. He said if he has the kid, you’ll keep sending him money for the rest of your life so he doesn't hurt her.”
A primal, violent instinct surged through my veins. He wasn't just trying to take my money. He was going to steal my child and hold her ransom in a foreign country.
“He’s picking her up from Martha’s house in two hours,” Chloe warned. “He hired two private security guys to come with him. He said he has a judge’s order, and if anyone tries to stop him, he’ll take her by force.”
I stood up, sliding the itinerary into my pocket.
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“What are you going to do?” Chloe asked, looking up at me with desperate, red-rimmed eyes.
I looked down at my sister. “I’m going to do what I do every night in the trauma ward. I’m going to stop the bleeding, and I’m going to cut out the infection.”
